Children and the Law: An Introduction to Child Visitation Rights

If you’re in the middle of a divorce, there are probably a million things on your mind. Divorce is a difficult thing to go through, and its something that’s made all the more difficult with children.

Understanding child visitation rights are incredibly important if you feel as though you’re involved in a divorce that is about to turn sour. You need to be able to protect yourself and your children, and you need to know when you can get the court involved.

Read on to learn more about child visitation rights and how your divorce will play a role in this process.

Child Visitation Laws

Child visitation laws are put in place to protect the rights of a parent who doesn’t have full custody of their children. They decide how much time that parent can spend with them.

For the most part, state courts handle child visitation right cases in a family law hearing and they usually involve other things like separation, divorce, child support, alimony, and custody.

Visitation rights are different than custody agreements, though they can go hand in hand. Visitation is usually more restrictive than a general custody agreement, and it gives the non-custodial parent specific times and dates that they can see their child.

As you can probably imagine, child visitation can bring about a number of legal issues. People who are in the middle of a divorce rarely agree on anything, and adding children to the mix makes this disagreement much more likely. Child visitation often doesn’t come with an agreed on a schedule.

When this happens, the court gets involved. If the parents can’t come together to agree, they will decide the details. And while you might think this means the matter is settled, it doesn’t.

If one parent has a problem with the schedule that the court created, they can dispute it and the process starts all over again.

Also, if one parent feels as though the child isn’t being cared for properly, when one parent keeps the child for longer than the agreement says they can, and when a grandparent attempts to gain visitation the matter can be disputed all over again.

It’s obvious that when children are involved, emotions run high. When you add in the fact that two people who were once in love are now divorcing, it creates an atmosphere that breeds a lot of hostility.

Unfortunately, this means that the child suffers.

The Child’s Best Interest

The court system looks at the complete picture of the child when they make decisions. They take their physical, mental, emotional, educational, and developmental needs into consideration when they make their rulings about child visitation rights.

It can be so easy to get lost in divorce proceedings. All too often parents only consider their own needs when they are arguing over custody and visitation rights. However, the court’s job is to step in and bring everyone’s focus back on what matters the most: the children involved in the case.

The court tries to make decisions based on a number of different factors, like the parent’s ties to the child, the money each parent can make, whether or not the parent can provide a safe and loving home, and a number of other things go into these decisions.

The court also does its best not to change the child’s current situation in a way that will be damaging in the future. They also consider what the children want, but they don’t allow that to completely determine the outcome.

How to Establish Visitation Rights

If the parents are already involved in a family law case, like a divorce proceeding, all they have to do is file a motion for visitation. If both parents agree, it can be as simple as a judge signing a stipulated order and putting the motion into effect.

If there is currently no case, whoever is looking for visitation has to start one. They will have to file a petition to figure out custody and support.

How to Change a Visitation Rights Order

This is one of the kinds of cases that the family court sees the most often. Divorce and separation are relatively common and over time, everyone’s situations start to change. If the parents can’t agree to custody on their own terms, every time something changes between the time the separation starts and when the child turns 18, they need to involve the court.

Either parent is allowed to ask for a change to their visitation rights plan. Again, the court will look for what is in the child’s best interest. However, they also require the parent who asks for the change to prove how their circumstances make the old plan unsuitable.

When a parent moves or changes jobs or when a child asks to spend more time in one place or another, visitation rights change.

Getting an Attorney

Just like with every other area of family law, the ease of this process depends entirely on how well the parents can get together and cooperate with one another.

If you’re seeking visitation rights and you and the other parent cannot agree on schedules, an attorney is an invaluable resource. They can help you ensure that the court hears your voice and that you have a say in what is most important for you and your child.

Visitation Rights

When two people get together and have a child, the last thing they expect is to be fighting over when they can see that child just a few years later. However, that’s a reality for a large number of Americans today. It’s important to seek out the visitation rights you deserve if you hope to have a healthy, stable relationship with your child in the future.

For more helpful information about the legal system and how it can impact your divorce or separation, visit our blog today.